As Italian I could try to give you an explanation about the difference between North and South Italy.
Basically it derives from the unification process, during the last part of 19th century. Someone thinks the South payed more in this process. Someone else argues that it depends on economic and political differences present before the unification. North was an ensemble of little states, South a large state related to Spanish monarchy.
The main difference between Europe and other country in that Age was that Europe was divided in relative small nations, not a big Empire. This permitted to have more chance to be supported for a Discovery or an invention.